


Band of Brothers Appreciation Week 2021

by whoahersheybars



Category: Band of Brothers (TV 2001)
Genre: Alternate Universe - World War II, Angst, Band Of Brothers - Freeform, Band of Brothers Appreciation Week, Baseball, Bastogne, Berchtesgaden, BoB Week, Drama & Romance, Easy Company - Freeform, F/M, HBO War - Freeform, Rachamps Church, World War II, holland
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-16
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-25 11:07:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30088161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whoahersheybars/pseuds/whoahersheybars
Summary: A collection of short stories and imagines written for Band of Brothers Appreciation Week.
Relationships: Eugene Roe/Ralph Spina, George Luz/Original Female Character(s), Joseph Liebgott/Original Female Character(s)





	1. Day 1, one location / scenery ~ Berchtesgaden

The air was joyful. It hadn't been like that since Aldbourne. The feeling of laughter bubbling up in your chest, or the weight of the world briefly lifting off your shoulders was strange and unfamiliar to Easy Company. But they welcomed it.

Bonnie Stevenson always thought her twenty-first birthday would be spent at home eating rabbit she had caught with her father. Or maybe she would have gone to the local tavern with Marcy, like they had always discussed. But Berchtesgaden was very far from North Carolina. And Bonnie hadn't seen the forests of her home for almost three years.

George Luz didn't really feel like celebrating either. All he could think about was how Skip and Penkala weren't around to witness the end of the war. Penk would never get to see his home again. Skip would never marry sweet Faye Tanner. Bonnie and George's minds were filled with thoughts of their best friends. Wondering if there was anything they could have done to save them.

"Do you think they know?" George's quiet voice was barely audible over the raucous singing of their friends, who were a little more than drunk by now. But Bonnie heard him loud and clear.

"Yeah. They know."

Bonnie could have said more to reassure him that their friends were in fact watching over them, but she had always been a woman of few words. George knew that. It was one of things about her that he liked the most. Her quiet presence was comforting. When they were together, there was never a need to fill the silence. That was what true friendship was.

"You better come visit the Luz family in West Warwick, Ginger."

"Sure thing, Georgie. Sure thing."


	2. Day 2, one character ~ Joseph Liebgott

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joe's departure is interrupted by Antonia Demopoulos.

Joe Liebgott felt the guilt eating away at his insides as he slipped away. They were all too busy listening to George Luz's story to notice him leave. It was better that way, he told himself. As much as he loved Easy Company, they were a constant reminder of death. Joe had watched so many of his friends die, and he hadn't been able to save them. His mind screamed at him to save them. But they were gone before he had the chance to even move.

It was better that he left now.

"And just where do you think you're going?"

Joe knew he should have been quieter.

"What are you doin' here, Toni?"

He sighed, not even having to turn around to know who was speaking to him. Joe would know Antonia Demopoulos' voice anywhere.

"I'm here to stop you makin' a decision you'll regret."

It was then that Joe turned to face her. She was stood less than three feet away from him, arms crossed and that adorable frown on her face, the one she thought was intimidating but just made her look like a bunny. Joe suddenly had second thoughts about leaving.

"I've thought this through, Toni. It's better this way, trust me."

"So it's better that you leave without sayin' goodbye? It's better that you never see any of us again? The people you've fought alongside for a damn year? Joe, we've been through way too much together for you to leave things like this!"

Toni's eyes were welling with tears, and Joe felt the guilt churn in his stomach again. He hated seeing her cry. She had seen so much pain; watched the people she loved most die. Joe didn't want their last conversation to be filled with her tears.

But he was selfish. _So selfish._

"Antonia. I can't look at any of you without being reminded of everything. Every time I look into your eyes - their eyes - all I see is death. And I can't very well go on living my life like that."

Toni's tears stopped.

"Is that all you see? Pain? Death? Do you not see how strong we all are because of each other? 'Cause that's what I see."

"Toni-"

" _Don't_. Don't you even _dare_. I have tried to be good to you. I stayed with you after Landsberg, remember? I talked you out of killin' that Kraut Commandant because I _knew_ you would regret it. And what have you done for me? Nothing."

Joe was dumbstruck. Never in his three years of knowing Antonia Demopoulos, had he ever seen her so angry. And knowing that he was the cause of that, made it even worse.

Joe should have stayed. Should have told her he was sorry, that he never meant to hurt her. _Should have told her how much he loved her._

But Joe Liebgott was selfish.

"I'm sorry, Toni."

For the last time, he turned away, knowing full well that he would never see her again. He would never get to see that beautiful smile tht he loved so much light up her face. He would never get to see her home, or meet her parents like they had discussed that cold night in Bastogne. Antonia Demopoulos was slipping through his fingers, but Joe knew that - this time - he had to let her go.

_It was for her own good._


	3. Day 3, one episode ~ Replacements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zofia reflects on how her life has changed in the war.

Zofia and Randleman had been hiding for hours.

The light had faded, leaving only the orange glow from German bonfires to aid their vision. Zofi always liked fire. There was something reassuring about it. A reminder that nothing lasts forever, and that everything returns to the ashes from which it came. One way or another, Zofi could relate to it. In an odd sort of way, fire reflected her life. It didn't last forever.

Zofi's life ended the day she lost Mikołaj and Hanna.

Bonnie didn't like fire. She was terrified of it. Then again, Bonnie was terrified of everything. Zofi often wondered why she joined the fight in the first place, seen as it scared her so much. Maybe she was bound by duty. Like her.

Toni didn't like fire either, but at least she had a good reason. The Demopoulos family had lost everything in the Great Fire of Smyrna. It made sense that it brought out such an intense dread. Toni already knew War.

But Zofi knew War better than anyone.

It had first made its way into her life when the Germans invaded Bielsk Podlaski. War took her mother and sister away. War sat back and laughed as she watched them fall to the metallic bite of Nazi bullets.

Then War destroyed her hope. Mikołaj was the best thing that ever could have happened to her. He saved her from a very dark place, pulled her away from the edge of the cliff. And Zofi was happy with him. She was happy. Mikołaj was her saving grace. He gave her hope again, gave her love.

And he gave her Hanna.

But War took them away from her aswell.

The weight of Mikołaj's dog tags rested heavily around her neck. The cold metal pressed uncomfortably into her chest. Good she missed him. She missed them.

Zofi inhaled sharply.

"You okay?"

Randleman was by her side in a second, his eyes searching her face for something. What, he wasn't quiet sure. But there was definitely something, something that hadn't been there before.

Zofi turned to him with a weak smile. It was all she could muster. For years, she had become so used to locking away her emotions, hiding them from the people who had the most chance of breaking down her walls.

Zofi wasn't ready to let them fall just yet.

"I'm fine. I'm always fine."


	4. Day 4, one relationship ~ Eugene Roe and Ralph Spina

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ralph knows how Eugene is feeling. But Eugene is reluctant to open up.

Eugene never wanted to see another wounded soldier again. He never wanted to see the light leave a man's eyes as his blood stained the snow, crying out for his mother as if she might hear and come save him. Eugene was forced to sit back and watch as his friends - the men he had known for the better part of three years - were torn apart by Kraut artillery. Eugene knew there was nothing he could have done to help Joe and Bill, but that was not the case for every casualty. Why, oh why hadn't he got to Hoobler sooner? If he had just run a little faster, maybe he would still be alive.

Killed by his own goddamn gun.

Smokey was his fault too. Though if someone asked him how it was his fault, Eugene probably couldn't have told them. All he knew was that he was to blame for Smokey being paralysed. It should have been him. Smokey didn't deserve this, he didn't deserve any of this. And Eugene only blamed himself.

Even Skip and Penkala's deaths weighed on his shoulders. They were both too young, with such bright futures ahead of them. Eugene often heard Skip talking about his sweetheart Faye Tanner. He vowed to marry her as soon as the war was over. Now, he would never get the chance.

Eugene felt helpless.

"Ya need to stop blamin' yourself, Gene."

Ralph Spina was always watching. Keeping track of his friend and fellow medic's mental state. It wasn't good. Eugene was trapped in his own mind, drowning in guilt and despair and fear. He was going to break.

Ralph understood. He felt it too. The feeling of being wound up like a spring, the tension building and building and building until... it suddenly snaps. Eugene was close, dangerously close to the breaking point. The point of no return.

"It don't do ya any good to sit here in silence. Maybe talkin' about it-"

"I don't wanna talk about it, Spina."

Ralph had been expecting a sharp reply. Those were becoming more frequent as of late. Eugene would snap, and get angry, and he would drop the subject quickly.

He wasn't going to this time.

"Gene. I get it. I really do. I go through the same stuff you do! I've seen men die! I've seen how young they are too, not even old enough to buy a damn drink! So if you're gonna tell me I don't understand, then save it. Because I'm a combat medic. Just like you."

Eugene was taken aback. The Ralph Spina he knew was mild-tempered and barely ever raised his voice, but this Ralph was different. This Ralph was tired and fed up of war. All he wanted was to go home, sleep in a proper bed, and never see the crimson colour of blood ever again. This Ralph felt just as helpless as him.

"I'm sorry Spina. I just... I don't know how much longer I can take this."

Eugene met Ralph's gaze from across their foxhole, and for the first time, he saw his own expression reflected in another's eyes

"I know, buddy. I know."


	5. Day 5, one scene ~ Rachamps Church

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evangeline is thankful for Lipton and Speirs.

Issy and Evangeline had never known such luxury, as to be able to sleep on a wooden bench. Compared to the snowy foxholes they had been forced to huddle inside for all those weeks in Bastogne, a church pew was heaven. And the girls' choir singing Plaisir D'amour were the angels.

"My mama used to play this song on the piano." Evangeline - also aptly nicknamed 'Angel' by her comrades - recalled with a wistful smile. Geneveive Dubois had played many songs on their piano back home in Annecy, but Plaisir D'amour was always her favourite.

"Is there anything your mother can't do? Last week you told me she painted a portrait for Coco Chanel!" Issy laughed, then shrank back into her seat as the nun observing the choir girls shot her a disapproving look.

"She did! Mama is a very good artist!" Angel defended with a small smile, the first one that had fully graced her lips in weeks.

"And apparently a musician, too." Issy murmured quietly, careful not to catch the strict nun's attention again. She always seemed to find a way of getting into trouble without intending to.

Angel glanced down at her friend with a fond smile, chuckling softly at the way she shied away from the nun's gaze. For as long as she had known her, Issy always had a gift for getting on the wrong side of people she shouldn't. Angel could practically hear Sobel screaming, "Private Castro, if you turn up late for PT one more time this week, your weekend pass will be revoked for the rest of your life!"

Issy never did get to join them for weekend drinks.

Angel suddenly found herself missing the good old days at Camp Toccoa. Looking back on it, the daily PT sessions where Sobel would scream at them for not making it over the wall, and their long and exhausting runs up Currahee felt like a lifetime ago. Angel would have given anything to go back, with the Black Swan and all. Even Sobel's insults were better than Bastogne.

But nothing could be worse than Bastogne.

Angel just knew Lieutenant Dike was going to be their downfall. She knew it from the moment Issy and George nicknamed him, 'Foxhole Norman' in Holland. That man was not a soldier. He never should have been allowed to command Easy Company. And he had cost them so much.

It made her angry.

Lip had been their guardian angel in the dark days of Bastogne. He was the leader Easy Company needed more than anything, as strong as decisive as Winters, and one of the best people she knew. Angel often found herself praying, just praying to God that Lip would take over, give Easy a little hope. He would have got the whole company back on their feet, given them something to fight for again.

But instead they had Foxhole Norman.

When Dike was put in charge of the attack on Foy, Angel wanted to scream. They had already lost too many soldiers, good soldiers. Skinny had been evacuated, Smokey paralysed, Toye and Guarnere lost their legs in one of the last barrages in the Bois Jacques woods, Skip, Penkala... and two of the bravest women she ever knew. They were going to lose even more with Dike in charge.

Then came Easy Company's saviour.

Ronald Speirs was - in all honesty - the last person Angel expected to come to their rescue. She had only met him a few times, but the rumours... the rumours were hard to ignore. Even for someone like her, and Angel had never been one to gossip.

Ronald Speirs saved them all.

He came charging through Foye like a man on a mission, not even glancing at the Germans on his either side. The attack was failing, thanks to Dike's idiocy, and too many good men were losing their lives. Speirs turned it all around single handedly.

He was a hero.

Angel was glad he was their new CO. The whole company was glad. She had spoken to Lipton only two hours before, and even he had expressed his deep relief that Dike was gone, and they finally had a good leader in charge. Maybe things would start looking up for Easy.

"You wanna ask me don't ya?"

Angel blinked rapidly, the image of that frost-bitten battlefield fading from before her eyes. She glanced to her side, and realised that Issy had fallen asleep; her head lolled to the side and there was a contented smile on her lips. She still looked like a girl, even after everything they had been through.

"Ask you what, sir?"

Angel turned away from Issy's sleeping figure, her eyes instead focussing on the two men in her line of sight; Speirs and Lipton. The former was collecting his equipment, presumably to make his way back to Battalion, while the latter watched him with a curious gaze. Angel sat up a little straighter in her seat.

"You wanna know if they're true or not, the stories about me."

Lipton seemed amused, and maybe a little apprehensive. Speirs never really spoke to anyone, let alone spoke to them about his darkest secrets. And the rumours... were the darkest it could get.

"Did you ever notice with stories like that, everyone says they heard it from someone who was there, but when you ask that person, they say they heard it from someone who was there."

Speirs spoke about the rumours like they didn't bother him, with such nonchalance, and perhaps even a hint of smugness. Angel watched a slight smirk stretch across his face, and suddenly, she wasn't so convinced by the rumours anymore.

"I bet if you went back 2,000 years, ya'd here a couple of centurions standin' around, yakkin' about how Tertius lopped off the heads of some Carthaginian prisoners."

"Well, maybe they kept talkin' about it 'cause they never heard Tertius deny it."

Angel got the feeling they weren't really talking about Tertius.

"Hm, maybe that's because Tertius knew there was some value to the men thinkin' he was the meanest, toughest sonofabitch in the whole Roman Legion."

Oh.

Now she understood.

Angel supposed a reputation like that was useful, especially in a war such as this. Fear was a natural thing to feel in the presence of someone like him. The rumours about Speirs were known by all of Easy Company, and possibly even the whole 506th. Everyone knew he was a cold-blooded, merciless, perhaps slightly insane killer. Or at least, they thought they did.

"Sir, these men aren't really concerned about the stories. They're just glad to have you as their CO. They're happy to have a good leader again."

Lipton's eyes weren't so guarded anymore, but curiosity still lingered within them. Perhaps he was just realising - a little like Angel - that there was a lot more to Ronald Speirs than meets the eye.

"Well from what I heard, they've always had one. I've been told there's always been one man they could count on. Led 'em in the Bois Jacques, held 'em together when they had the crap shelled outta them in the woods. Every day he kept his spirits up, kept the men focussed, gave 'em direction. All the things a good combat leader does."

Angel couldn't help the grin that spread across her face, because no truer words had ever been spoken. And the best thing about it, Lip was completely oblivious. He had no idea just how much Easy Company had relied on him through Bastogne. He was a pillar, a friend to lean on, to listen to their problems, to offer advice, all while being an exceptional leader. They owed their lives to him. Because without Lipton, Angel was sure she wouldn't have been able to go on.

"You don't have any idea who I'm talkin' about do ya?"

"No, sir."

"Hell, it was you, First Sergeant."

As Lipton's eyebrows raised in surprise, Angel saw - for the first time - a real, genuine smile on Speirs' face. It made her grin widen even further. Lip was the glue that held them together. Even Speirs - who had run straight through German fire for Easy Company - was acknowledging it. It was all down to Lipton.

"Oh, and you're not gonna be a first sergeant for much longer, First Sergeant."

"Sir?"

"Winters put in for a Battlefield commission, and Sink approved on your behalf. You should get the official nod in a few days."

Angel could have cried.

"Congratulations, Lieutenant."

Lipton looked like he couldn't quite believe it, even as Speirs sent him a brief smile before walking away. He was stood motionless for a few seconds, the shock immobilising his limbs.

Lip deserved this.

With Speirs as their new CO, and Lipton getting a Battlefield commission, it seemed that Easy's darkest days might finally be behind them. Bastogne truly had been hell on Earth, the kind of thing that no one should ever have to endure. Just the shriek of a shell, or the faint whistle of a bullet was enough to strike terror into the hearts of every single soldier in the Bois Jacques woods. Angel had never known anything like it.

She wouldn't allow herself to relax, even now Dike was gone. War was much too complicated to hope for its end at any point, let alone when it was so close to finally being won. It would only hurt more in the end. Hope could be a very dangerous thing.

But it could also be your salvation.


	6. Day 6, one quote ~ "War's over"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rosie doesn't like baseball. It gives her a headache.

Rosie didn't really understand baseball.

The Americans played it a lot back home, apparently, but it didn't make much sense to her. The game just seemed to go on forever, the men running around in never-ending circles to the point that it made her dizzy. Wendy had tried to explain it to her once, but she hadn't really listened. Now Rosie wished she had.

Wendy wasn't around to explain it anymore.

George was the next to run in that dizzying loop, but he didn't make it all the way round. Neither did Frank, and the men - or the fielders - all clapped and cheered in delight. Rosie didn't understand baseball. It made her feel trapped. It went in a circle - much like the loop they all ran - and never seemed to end. Rosie prayed it would end.

"Easy Company! School circle!"

Captain Speirs was a small mercy at that moment, temporarily halting the game. Rosie sucked in a sharp breath, filling her lungs with air, and the tightness in her chest lifted. Baseball was a ceaseless game, and it trapped her in her own mind. Her mind was a dangerous place to be, as of late.

"You sure ya don't wanna play, Rosie?"

Gene asked as he fell into step beside her. Even the quiet medic had joined in with the game, and a genuine smile graced his lips for the first time since Bastogne.

Rosie still didn't want to play.

"No. I'd just mess it up and make a fool of myself."

She mumbled and tried to smile, but Eugene knew it was fake. All of Rosie's smiles had been fake, in all the time he had known her. She was trapped in the never-ending circle death, and Rosie didn't seem to be able to escape.

Eugene knew not to push her, so he dropped it.

"Listen up. Got some news."

Winters addressed Easy Company as soon as Rosie and Gene joined the group. He glanced around at his men and women, and there was a new glint in his eye.

"This morning, President Truman received the unconditional surrender from the Japanese."

Silence.

"War's over."

Rosie stood stock still in her place, even as the rest of Easy Company went back to play Basebell. Her legs were rooted to the ground.

War's over.

She had been waiting for those two words for so long. So, so long. Ever since Dunkirk, ever since she lost everything. Rosie felt as if the world were falling away from her feet, and she was floating. Was that what happiness felt like? Rosie hadn't felt happiness since before the war, not really. Not the kind of happiness that came from knowing she could finally go home.

Her never-ending circle had finally reached its end. She wasn't trapped anymore.

And it felt so good.

Rosie's face broke out into a wide smile, her first genuine one since '39. The muscles in her face hurt with the effort of it, but Rosie didn't give a damn.

The war was over.

The pain and suffering was over.

Being trapped in that dizzying loop was over.

Rosie rejoined Easy Company, this time with a liberating lightness in her chest. She was happy, happy and free.

And Rosie found that Baseball wasn't so bad after all.


	7. Day 7, free choice ~ In our memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The women of Easy Company don't feel like celebrating VE Day.

VE Day.

The day they had all been hoping for.

Celebrations lasted well into the night, each man wanting to make the most of the fresh alcohol and their CO's apparent leniencey.

But the women of Easy Company didn't celebrate.

They couldn't find it in their hearts.

Seven battle-hardened soldiers sat around a log fire, not talking, not drinking, simply staring into the flickering orange flames. They had much to think about. What were they going to do after the war? How were they going to move on, how were they going to forget?

None of them honestly believed they would forget.

Each and every woman had seen things that would stay with them till the day they died. They had lost friends, loved ones, and they had lost hope. They had lost two of their own as well. Nine had become seven in a matter of days, and the women of Easy Company didn't know how many more they would lose. It was a mercy the Battle of the Bulge ended when it did, otherwise... there may not have been any of them left to tell the story of their fallen comrades.

But those seven battle-hardened women had survived Bastogne. And now they were sat around that flickering log fire, wondering what on Earth they were going to do with their lives, now that VE Day was finally here.

The women had changed so much these past few years, to the point where their friends and family wouldn't even recognise them. They didn't even want to go home, if their mothers and fathers would be greeted by a different girl to the one who left.

Bonnie had always been the innocent one, always asking questions, always curious about the world. Then the world showed its true colours. As Bonnie stared into the orange flames, she didn't question the way they turned everything to ash.

Isidra Castro was watching her friend with a dull stare. There was no trace of the bright spark in her eyes that had first showed itself in Toccoa. The girl who had wanted to bring joy to everyone around her was empty inside. Her spark had diminished, like the flames soon would.

Antonia Demopoulos still looked out for her friends, despite the tear in her heart. She saw the dull grey sheen over their eyes, hanging over like a storm-cloud or sea mist on the worst of mornings. Issy never laughed anymore, Bonnie's eyes never lit up with curiosity. But when was the last time she had even smiled?

Rosie Blake hadn't smiled since Dunkirk, since she watched her brother die right before her eyes. Rosie found some kind of happiness in her friends' smiles, but none of them smiled any more, either. They were mere ghosts of themselves, sitting around the fire on uncomfortable wooden chairs, not even having the heart to celebrate the end of suffering.

Not even Daphne Williams could manage one drink. It simply made her feel sick to the stomach. How was it fair that she was still here, when there could have been someone better in her place? The guilt was overwhelming, that she were still free, free to drink, free to celebrate VE Day, when her best friend was dead. What right did she have to be here?

Dorothy Monroe had grown up in a life of priviledge, where whatever she wanted, she got. But however loudly Dotty screamed and shouted and cursed the world, it would not bring back those they had lost. They were supposed to be in God's arms now, but where had God been in Bastogne? God had abandoned them.

Evangeline Dubois normally would have told Dotty to trust that their friends were in a better place now. There was a time when Angel would have taken comfort in the idea of heaven, in the hope that their friends would be waiting for them outside those Pearly Gates. But maybe Dotty was right this time. God had turned a blind eye to their suffering. Angel felt betrayed.

Then there were the two they had lost. Zofia Kaszynska and Wendy Campbell were killed within mere days of each other in Bastogne, shocking the whole of Easy Company to the core. One moment, they were both there, laughing and joking and keeping all their spirits up, and the next... they were nothing more than a memory.

The women had left two empty chairs out for their friends, not wanting to let them go quite yet. They liked to think Wendy and Zofi were there, watching over them, sighing and shaking their heads at the sorry state they were in. Bonnie glanced over at the two empty chairs and tried to imagine it. So did the others.

They could almost see Zofi's long raven hair, that had always been the envy of the company. And Wendy's motherly smile still sparked a warmth in each of their hearts, even if she wasn't really there.

Zofi and Wendy would only live in their memories now.

"I wish they were here to see it."

Daphne broke the silence, her voice harsh and scratcy from underuse. She had barely spoken since Bastogne, since Wendy was killed.

"I wish there was some way to let them know... that we did it."

The women sat in silence for a few moments, their minds still filled only with thoughts of their friends. Did they know it was all over? Were Wendy and Zofi up there somewhere, celebrating in the place of the friends they had left behind?

"They know."

And none of them doubted that was the truth.


End file.
